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LONDON – Bitcoin plunged nearly $ 3,000 in less than 24 hours after hitting unseen highs since late 2017.
The bitcoin price was trading at $ 19,374 at 1:45 pm London time on Wednesday when it began its decline. Losses accelerated overnight, with the price dropping from $ 18,824 at 2am Thursday to $ 16,857 by 9am, according to data from industry site CoinDesk.
Bitcoin was in crisis in 2020, skyrocketing by more than 150% in one leap.Cryptocurrency enthusiasts have credited unprecedented monetary and fiscal stimulus in response to the Covid-19 crisis, as well as interest from large investors such as Paul Tudor Jones and Stanley Druckenmiller.
The latest drop comes as many had predicted that the cryptocurrency would soon hit an all-time high of $ 20,000.
Antoni Trenchev, managing partner and co-founder of Nexo, who bills himself as the largest cryptocurrency lender in the world, said he expects bitcoin to hit $ 20,000 and beyond.
“In the long run, I don’t see anything derailing Bitcoin’s irrevocable rise,” Trenchev said. “That doesn’t mean we won’t have pullbacks along the way. See what happened in March; Bitcoin plunged 40% in one day during the coronavirus market panic. 20-30% can and should be expected.”
He added: “Any healthy market must have withdrawals and periods of consolidation. Already in 2020 we have seen a 160% increase.”
Bitcoin peaked at $ 19,783 in December 2017. After reaching that milestone, the bubble burst and bitcoin plunged to $ 3,122 the following year.
It surpassed $ 15,000 on November 5, $ 18,000 on November 19, and $ 19,000 on November 24.
Bitcoin’s market value – which is calculated by multiplying the total number of bitcoins in circulation by the price – now stands at $ 315.3 billion, down from $ 355.9 billion on Tuesday, according to CoinDesk.
—Ryan Browne of CNBC contributed to this story.
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